The International Criminal Court (ICC), the judicial body responsible for trying individuals accused of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aggression, has stated that Sudanese government forces and the Rapid Support Forces, which are involved in combat in Sudan, have committed war crimes in the western Darfur region.
Meanwhile, the United Nations condemned the acts of violence that occurred in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and South Sudan, which resulted in dozens of casualties.
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, addressed the United Nations Security Council, stating that the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor has “reason to believe” that both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces have committed crimes under the Rome Statute, including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
Khan added that the Office of the Prosecutor has been “collecting a very substantial amount of material, information, and evidence related to these crimes” since the commencement of investigations in July last year.
He emphasized that the alleged atrocities in Geneina are pivotal to the ongoing investigations.
He continued, “We are accumulating a significant amount of material, information, and evidence related to these specific crimes.”
Khan urged the UN Security Council and the international community to “address the catastrophe and prevent the spread of violence on a wider scale.”
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court stressed that “what is happening in Darfur is bad enough, but there is a real danger of the possibility of violence spreading deeply.”
The spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric, said, “We condemn the violence and attacks against the peacekeeping force and call on the governments of South Sudan and Sudan to swiftly investigate the attacks with the assistance of UNISFA [UN Interim Security Force for Abyei] and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
In the recent attacks, 54 people were killed, including two members of the UN peacekeeping force (UNISFA), in ethnically motivated attacks in a disputed area between Sudan and South Sudan, according to the United Nations, which called for calm.
These recent attacks followed clashes in November, which resulted in the deaths of 32 people, including a member of the international peacekeeping force.
The international mission deployed in Abyei for 12 years includes 4,000 police and military personnel.
